Several automakers in India reported large double-digit vehicle gains in year-on-year sales in December, reports the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers.

Market leader Maruti Suzuki enjoyed a 36% surge in sales in December, delivering 71,000 vehicles in India. The company’s exports more than tripled to 13,800 units compared to a year earlier.

SIAM says second-place Hyundai Motor Co. fared even better, posting a 43% year-over-year hike in December with sales of 22,300 units. Already India’s largest vehicle exporter, Hyundai shipped nearly 25,000 vehicles last month, up 9% from December 2008.

Sales are expected to continue to trend upward this year, thanks to new models in the pipeline such as Fiat’s upcoming Linea and Grande Punto models, General Motors Chevrolet Beat, Volkswagen’s Polo, Maruti’s Eeco, Skoda’s Yeti and Tata’s new crossover vehicle.

Car sales in India through the fiscal year ending March 31 are up 21% to more than 1.2 million so far, according to SIAM.

Last year Vietnam’s economy grew about 5.2% over 2008 levels, according to the country’s General Statistics Office. The agency forecasts a 6.5% uptick this year, which matches the latest estimate by the Asian Development Bank and is nearly as optimistic as HSBC’s 6.8% prediction.

Keeping the inflation rate in check is considered a key growth driver. Analysts have cautioned that stimulus measures implemented by the government to counter the affects of last year’s global recession could trigger runaway inflation. But prices increased 6.5% last year-well below the 19.9% inflation rate that stymied 2008’s growth-according to government reports.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung tells a banking conference in Hanoi that he favors flexible monetary policies to maintain a single-digit inflation rate. The State Bank took a step in this direction by capping credit growth at 25%. But others warn that inflation could accelerate if the bank can’t direct money into real estate and other growth markets.

New car sales were expected to reach a record 115,000 units last year, according to the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers’ Assn. This compares to sales of 100,900 vehicles in 2008, which was a 48% improvement over the prior year. Vietnam now is on par with the Philippines and Singapore in terms of auto sales, but it remains far behind Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.

In hopes of stimulating future growth, Vietnam has launched plans to develop a national vehicle development program. The proposed vehicles will be able to seat up to nine people and be powered by gasoline engines that displace 1.5 liters or less. The country also is urging foreign automakers operating in Vietnam to increase their domestic content.

Sollers JSC has opened an assembly plant in Russia’s eastern city of Vladivostok to produce vehicles for foreign partners. The facility is a refurbished ship repair plant.

The $168 million facility is expected to build some 10,000 SUVs for Ssangyong Motor Co. this year. It also will make its own UAZ-badged Patriot off-roader. Output for Isuzu Motors Ltd. and Fiat SpA is scheduled to begin next year, with total annual volume targeted to grow to 40,000 units by 2012. The Fiat vehicle, which is based on the Ducato van, will be produced in a variety of specialty models such as armored vehicles and school buses.

Funding for the program is being provided by Russia’s Vnesheconombank. Six-year-old Sollers, formerly known as OAO Severstal Auto, already assembles vehicles for Fiat, Isuzu and Ssangyong at other facilities.

As part of its restructuring efforts, cash-strapped OAO AvtoVAZ is breaking off six of its parts-making units from its main automaking business. The subsidiaries include steelmaking and stamping operations as well as those that make various component parts and systems.

Moving forward, AvtoVAZ hopes to form joint ventures and other partnerships for each of the various units. It says it also will consider outright sales of the subsidiaries.

In November, the Russian government announced plans to inject $1.65 billion into AvtoVAZ. Renault SA, which bought a 25% stake in the company two years ago, agreed to contribute technology and equipment valued at $360 million to help the Russian carmaker update its vehicles.

The parts subsidiaries employ 30,000 people-nearly a third of AvtoVAZ’s overall workforce. The company previously announced plans to cut about 47,000 jobs. It isn’t clear how many of these were employed in the parts operations or if the formation of the subsidiaries counts toward the reduction.

With the help of Renault and alliance partner Nissan Motor Co., AvtoVAZ also has started a new initiative to standardize and improve the quality of parts received from external suppliers. Under the program, suppliers that don’t meet quality standards will face monetary penalties and be put on a three-month probation. If the situation doesn’t improve, AvtoVAZ will seek an alternative supplier. The company currently works with about 300 tier one suppliers and another 900 second and third tier vendors. About 90% of defects stem from 60 suppliers, according to the company.

China Petroleum Corp. says it has begun making gasoline that will allow vehicles to meet strict Euro V emission requirements. Beijing introduced Euro IV compliant fuels in 2008 to help improve the city’s air quality before the summer Olympics.

The Euro V fuel will be produced at China Petroleum’s huge Zhenhai refinery in the coastal province of Zhejiang. The facility can produce 1.5 million metric tons of gasoline per year, including 34,700 barrels per day of the Euro V gasoline. Although most of the fuel will be consumed domestically, its ability to meet Euro V standards will make it more attractive for export markets too.

China’s overall domestic gasoline production rose 11% in November from a year earlier to 6.33 million tons, or 1.8 million bpd. To meet growing demand, production at the Zhejiang facility may be nearly doubled to 40 million tons per year.

Despite its global name, Dearborn, Mich.-based International Automotive Components Group thus far has been largely absent from one key market: Asia.

But the interiors giant, which was created by billionaire Wilbur Ross in 2006, aims to rectify the situation. Jim Kamsickas, who heads the company’s operations in North America and Asia, tells Automotive News that IAC is targeting annual sales of $425 million in Asia by 2012, up from about $225 million in the region in 2009. IAC Group’s worldwide revenue was about $4.5 billion last year.

When it was formed out of assets acquired from Lear Corp. and the now defunct Collins & Aikman Corp., IAC Group had just two plants in China and one OEM customer there. The company now operates 14 facilities in Asia, including three technical centers. Customers in the region now include Daimler, Honda, Mahindra & Mahindra, Nissan, SAIC, Toyota, Volkswagen and others.

The acquisition of Mitsuboshi Kaseihin Co. in late 2006 helped spark IAC’s Asian ascent. Kamsickas says the independent Japanese supplier, which wasn’t part of an OEM’s keiretsu system, provided a toehold with Japanese carmakers and entry into other emerging markets in Asia. The small 35-year-old interiors specialist had sales of $175 million last year, according to AN.

IAC Group makes everything from consoles, doors and instrument panels to acoustic materials and carpeting. Its product lineup includes most interior components except seats.

The company’s Asian operations are based in Shanghai, where it also has an engineering center. Last year IAC Group opened a new 150,000-sq-ft plant in Pune, India, to make plastic instrument panels, cockpits and door assemblies for passenger cars and medium-/heavy-duty trucks.

General Motors Co. and its joint venture partners sold more than 1.8 million vehicles in China last year, up from nearly 1.1 million in 2008. The company estimates its market share in the country grew to 13.4% in 2009 from 12.1% in 2008.

Officials in Thailand expect the country’s economy to grow slightly during the just-completed fourth quarter. In addition to the global economic slowdown, Thailand was plagued by political and social unrest last year that included violent protests and the temporary closure of airports.

But Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajivas declares that Thailand has “clearly recovered” and says the economy is on its way to a “V-shaped” economic turnaround. The country’s automotive, electronics and other major industries already have shown improvement fueled by increasing global demand, notes the head of the Federation of Thai Industries.

Exports, which account for about 60% of Thailand’s economy, soared 17% to $13.7 billion in November vs. a year earlier. It was the first year-over-year gain in 13 months, according to the central bank.

Shipments fell nearly 3% in October. Government officials are targeting a 10%-15% expansion in shipments this year, with capacity utilization improving to 70% vs. last year’s rate of just over 60%.

Thailand’s imports slipped 0.3% to $12.6 billion in November from a year earlier. Year-on-year import volumes in October plunged 19%.

Another positive sign of the country’s economic revival: Industrial production climbed 9% in November vs. 2008 volumes. This was the largest increase in 16 months, easily outstripping the 0.5% year-over-year gain posted in October. Demand for disk drives and other electronic devices helped fuel the rebound.

Automakers will display dozens of low-cost compact cars this week at India’s Auto Expo in New Delhi. The semi-annual show will include 10 world premieres, and virtually every major OEM will have a presence at the event.

Leading the list of new model reveals will be Toyota Motor Corp.’s EFC (Entry Family Car) concept. The vehicle will provide the basis for a new sub-$10,000 model expected to go into production in Bangalore later this year. Output in Brazil and other markets will follow.

General Motors and Honda also will show new small cars in Delhi. Maruti Suzuki, which currently controls half of India’s new car market, will unveil its Concept R3 compact multipurpose vehicle that is part of the company’s plan to expand beyond its predominantly small-car lineup.

Volkswagen will officially kick off the launch of the Indian version of its Polo hatchback/sedan at the show. Local production of the vehicle in Mumbai commenced last month. VW’s Skoda brand will show its Yeti crossover vehicle.

The mini and compact segments account for three-quarters of India’s market. But luxury models are the fastest-growing niche. BMW and Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz unit are both expected to have a full contingent of models at the show.

Domestic and international suppliers also will be participating. Delphi Corp., for one, will showcase a number of its technologies, including advanced engine management systems, alternate refrigerants, battery monitors, emission control technologies and fuel handling systems.

Mazda Motor Corp. says it will begin making a sedan variant of its Mazda2 small car in Thailand during the first half of the year at its AutoAlliance joint venture plant with Ford Motor Co.

Located in the central province of Rayong, the new facility began making the Mazda2 (known as the Demio in Japan) hatchback late last year.

Initial production of the Thai-built sedan is expected to total only a few thousand units per year. In addition to domestic sales, Mazda plans to export both versions of the Mazda2 to other southeast Asian countries.